Movie Day!

Our family has a tradition on the Friday after Thanksgiving. And no, it’s not shopping for all those Black Friday deals. Since 1990 we’ve designated Black Friday as Movie Day.

And the movie that won the honor this year is…. Penguins of Madagascar.

My daughter is to blame for picking this flick and no one could tell her no. It looks cute, and funny, and I love cute & funny. Besides, they're PENGUINS! And those penguins were the best part of Madagascar. Movie time today is 11am (EST). I’ll let you know in the comments how it was.

We might have picked The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part I, but my daughter went and saw it last Saturday, so my husband, our son, and I saw it on Tuesday (discount Tuesday!!). Good movie. The moviemakers have done a good job with this series. I’m almost shocked! I loved the books and you know how it is when books are adapted to the screen. They usually bomb, right?

So…what movies have you seen lately? And did you brave the crowds today?

Stacy

Wednesday Reads and Pictures!

Wasn’t sure I’d have anything to report, but I finished it last night. Here’s what I read in the past week:

Nov 25: “Deadly Heat” by Richard Castle, the fifth book in the Nikki Heat series. Blurb from Goodreads: Picking up where Frozen Heat left off, top NYPD Homicide Detective Nikki Heat pursues the elusive former CIA station chief who ordered the execution of her mother over a decade ago. For the hunt, Nikki teams once again with her romantic partner, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Jameson Rook, and their quest for the old spy and the motive behind the past murder unearths an alarming terror plot-which is anything but ancient history. It is lethal. It is now. And it has already entered its countdown phase. Complicating Heat's mission to bring the rogue spy to justice and thwart the looming terror event, a serial killer begins menacing the Twentieth Precinct and her homicide squad is under pressure to stop him, and soon. The frightening murderer, known for his chilling stealth, not only has singled out Nikki as the exclusive recipient of his taunting messages, he then boldly names his next victim: Detective Heat. I didn't enjoy this one as I had with the others in this series. I think it has more to do with my reading preferences than the book, though. I prefer deep point of view, and this story was told more from above (omniscient—or old story as another person put it). I just didn't feel close to the story. Felt like I was reading a screen play instead. I love the television series, Castle, but I don't know if I'll continue reading the books. They just don't captivate me anymore.

This week was hard to get motivated to go to the gym. Especially when a holiday will disrupt my routine. But I went on Monday anyway and it’s a good thing I did or I never would have captured these shots:

 

Pretty cool, huh? I had noticed how the sun lit up the edges of the clouds and wanted a picture. But as I pulled into a parking lot, the rays appeared. Awesome!!

Okay, so maybe carrying an iPhone around isn’t ALL bad. Haha! J

So…Are you hosting Thanksgiving or visiting friends or relatives? We’re staying in, but I’m not cooking (I’m leaving that to Bob Evans). I’m such a rebel, huh?

Happy reading and Happy Thanksgiving!

Stacy

Weekend Update

Did you have a good weekend? Did you? Did you? Well I did!!!

Three down, two to go! Wayne High School is another step closer to the State Championship game. Their win on Saturday puts them in Mason (OH) next for the Division I, Region 2 final. I can’t wait to cheer them on. And I really hope I’m cheering them on Dec 6th at the Horseshoe (that would be the field OSU plays at). I’ve never been there before. The other two times I’ve seen Wayne make it to State (and lose, dang it!), they played in Canton. Allllll the way on the other side of the state! So glad they moved the game to someplace more central.

* * * *

I’m still debating on what I’ll put in my Christmas letter this year. I did pull out the old Christmas story I’d written a few years ago and polished it (kind of needed it!). Mainly, I had to make sure it would fit on one page (okay, one piece of paper—I print on both sides). Lucky me, it fit. I still have time to decide. It’s not like I have the Christmas cards ready to mail.

Which reminds me: BUY CHRISTMAS CARDS!!!!

Am I pathetic or what? Don’t answer that!

* * * *

Today I begin reading Blind Temptation (again) to make sure I didn’t screw anything up before sending it off to my editor. I’m kind of looking forward to it. Why? Because I really love this story.

When I was writing the first draft, I worried I had nothing. That the story was junk. Heck, I did the same thing while writing the first draft of Ghostly Liaison and I really love that story, too. I do it ALL THE TIME, it seems. I have to keep reminding myself of that, too, because I’m having such a hard time with Ghostly Interlude. I need to just write the darn thing. And I will. As soon as Blind Temptation is sent off.

But for now, I’m going to enjoy Blind Temptation and hope to GOD my editor does, too!

So…Did you have a good weekend? Did you? Did you? Please share!

Stacy

Oh Crap

As I sit here figuring out what to blog about (my mind is empty in that regard, let me tell you!), I realized something horrifying:

I need to write my annual Christmas letter!!!

I can’t even write a post. How the heck am I going to write a whole letter? Especially a letter that doesn’t sound like bragging.

I mean, there’s a fine line between sharing and bragging, right? And apparently it’s really easy to cross (as I’ve learned a few years ago—the accusation still stings, too).

I know form letters aren’t personal. They aren’t really meant to be, now are they—thus the “form” in form letters. But I like to tell people what I’ve been up to, since I get the feeling they don’t follow my blog (don’t see them posting any comments anyway). Hey, maybe I should just send everyone a Christmas story and leave it at that. Think that would go over well?

Hmmm… I might have to give that a try.

So… What have you freaked out about lately?

Stacy

Wednesday Reads

Did you notice? I’ve cleaned the sidebar a little. It was getting kind of long. So basically, I moved the anthologies to the new Short Stories page up top. Eventually, I’ll consolidate some of the pages to reflect the series instead of individual books. But I’m not in the mood to do that now.

Here’s what I read in the past week:

Nov 15: “Seventh Grave and No Body” by Darynda Jones, the seventh book in the Charley Davidson series, an urban fantasy. Blurb from book:  Twelve. Twelve of the deadliest beasts ever forged in the fires of hell have escaped onto our plane, and they want Davidson’s jugular and serve her body to Satan for dinner. So there’s that. But Charley has more on her plate than just a mob of testy hellhounds. For one thing, her father has disappeared, and as she retraces his last steps, she learns he was conducting an investigation of his own, one that has Charley questioning everything she’s ever known about him. Add to that an ex-BFF who is haunting her night and day, a rash of suicides that have authorities baffled, and a drop-dead sexy fiancé who has attracted the attentions of a local celebrity, and Charley is not having the best week of her life. But all of that barely scratches the surface of her problems. Recent developments have forced her to become a responsible adult. To conquer such a monumental task, she’s decided to start small. Really small. She gets a pet. But how can she save the world against the forces of evil when she can’t even keep a goldfish alive? A tad north of hell, a hop, skip, and a jump past the realm of eternity, is a little place called Earth, and Charley Davidson, grim reaper extraordinaire, is determined to do everything in her power to protect it. We’re doomed. I love this series and this book only fueled that love. I did find it interesting that this little statement is on the cover of my book: “Bonus Chapter Inside Only in the Print Edition!” And what is that “Bonus Chapter”? Well… the last scene in Reyes’ point of view. I’m so glad I prefer paper books. Okay, when’s the 8th book coming out???

I don’t know about you, but the weather has been messing with my exercise schedule. While I’ve been going to the gym pretty regularly for the past 7-8 weeks, it’s not an automatic thing for me, you know? I can easily be distracted in not going. I still grab onto excuses to not go. And yes, I’ve been using the weather as a reason not to go. I know I have to stop it, but really, if I don’t HAVE to go out in the snow/sub-zero temps, SHOULD I? Especially when I hear about all the accidents on the road? I hate using it as an excuse, but I really don’t want to risk an accident either. Another reason I really hate this time of year.

So… Are you looking forward to some pumpkin pie next week? No? Then what’s your favorite dessert for the holiday? I swear, I could eat a whole pumpkin pie by myself. Who needs the rest of the meal? Not me! J

Happy reading!

Stacy